The History of Milton’s A Cappella Groups

By ELEANOR RAINE ‘21

Almost every student has seen a cappella groups perform in assembly. But do you ever wonder the stories behind these groups and why they came to Milton? a cappella has been at Milton since the ‘50s, but the art form is much older. 2,000 years ago, churches didn’t want instruments in their services, so they turned to choirs in order to create the instrumental parts. a cappella became popular in America in the 1920s and 1930s and had a resurgence in the college movement of the late ‘40s and ‘50s. Milton’s traditions followed this college craze; in the early ‘50s, Milton’s first a cappella groups were formed.

Octet and Miltones are the oldest of the five a cappella groups on campus today, along with Ep!c, Three For Each of Us (known as 3Fu), and Reson8. Octet, Milton’s first all-girl group, was founded by Lynn Erdman ’52 and Kitty Benton ‘52. Ms. Mundinger advises the group, which is typically composed of eight or nine girls. Currently, Octet is led by Olayeni Oladipo ‘19 and Kat Stephan ‘19. Miltones is the oldest—and, as of now, only—boys group. It was created around the same time as Octet, and is advised by Mr. Whalen and led by Ricky Lin ‘19, Pearce Crocker ‘19, and Chuck Leonetti ‘19.

Another group that has been around for some time is Ep!c, led by Elena Viceira ‘19, Zoe Flessas-Finoche ‘19, and Chloe Morris ‘19. Ep!c is another all-girls group, and is the only a cappella group without a faculty advisor. The group members all agree that the lack of an advisor allows them to become extremely close.

3Fu has been around since 1998 and is Milton's oldest co-ed a cappella group. 3Fu’s name was inspired by the ratio of three girl members for every boy member. This school year actually marks the 20th anniversary of 3Fu’s creation. Currently, it’s led by their faculty advisor, Mr. Skinner, and its head Christine Char ‘19. Reson8, the second co-ed (and most recent) group, was formed a few years ago by Ginny Alex ‘17 and Dalton Letorney ‘17, and is now overseen by Coach Stone and run by Julia O’Connor ‘19 and Laura Bailey ‘19.

Milton has many opportunities for those who love to sing, such as the Chamber Singers and the Gospel Choir. However, some people prefer a less formal experience; in a choir, there is generally a teacher standing in front of the group, leading. In contrast, an a cappella group relies mainly on the students creating the arrangements. Ms. Mundinger, the faculty advisor for Octet, said that she “used to write out [the group’s] arrangements, but today’s students are really good at making the arrangements on their own”. In an a cappella performance, each member carries significant responsibility, whereas in a choir you might only be responsible for a small part of the overall sound.

Performing a cappella takes an incredible amount of concentration, practice, and time, but students say that the experience makes the commitment worth it. Elena Viceira ‘19 says that she chose a cappella over a larger choir because “you have more artistic liberty to sing the songs you want, when you want, and how you want”; not only do students enjoy the feeling of “being able to pick [their] own music and sing more current/pop music”, but they also love the friendships that are created. Friendships and trust are a very important part of both the performance and the experience. a cappella relies on every person in the group being in tune and singing perfectly. Groups need to trust every member to sing the part and rely on the others to sing theirs.

Our a cappella groups mean a lot to our community. Students love listening to the morning performances; one of the students’ favorite things about the assemblies is watching friends perform. These occasional performances brighten the days of our students as well as our greater community. Every spring, Milton hosts its annual a cappella night showcasing Milton’s a cappella singers and groups from colleges. Everyone should be on the lookout for this event, and show up to support these valuable parts of the Milton experience!

Image of Miltones members from 1963, courtesy of Milton Magazine ‘17